


Wings of War

by All_My_Characters_Are_Dead



Series: Mages and Familiars [13]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Oh look there's a plot happening
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2016-01-30
Packaged: 2018-05-17 02:13:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5849974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/All_My_Characters_Are_Dead/pseuds/All_My_Characters_Are_Dead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tsukishima and his familiar Yamaguchi are on the run, and they're going to need help if they're going to stay a step ahead of their pursuers. Fortunately, there's a flock of nosy crows in the area.</p><p>Or: Why Tsukishima Really Wishes He Never Joined a Guild</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Taking Flight

"We have to go. Now," Tsukishima announced when he walked into the room he shared with his familiar. Yamaguchi blinked up at him for a long moment, confused. "I'll explain later. But right now we have to leave." Yamaguchi nodded and reached for the bags they usually packed when they went on long missions for the Guild. "No time to pack, either." Yamaguchi frowned, but followed the mage out of the room. At the end of the hall, another Guild mage saw them and waved. Yamaguchi waved back, deciding that whatever was going on, acting normally was probably a good idea. Tsukishima took his hand and tugged him along, expression darker than usual. They made it to the Guild Hall's exit without drawing attention, but when they stepped outside, one of the sentinel mages approached them, expression serious.

"Tsukishima Kei, your presence is requested in the announcement hall," the sentinel announced. Tsukishima hesitated, and Yamaguchi sensed rather than saw the magic pooling in the mage's hand. Deciding that it was time to stop pretending everything was normal, Yamaguchi let go of Tsukishima's hand and lunged forward, shifting his form to the shape of the spotted stag he'd originally been and headbutting the sentinel, angling his head so he didn't impale the man with his antlers. The sentinel let out a pained gasp as the force of the blow drove the air from his lungs, and he went down. Yamaguchi hopped neatly over the now coughing sentinel, returning to human form as he did so.

"Good job," Tsukishima murmured, taking his hand and hurrying toward the street, Yamaguchi at his side.

"Thanks, Tsukki!" the familiar replied happily. As they reached the street, Yamaguchi heard shouts and glanced over his shoulder. Several more sentinel mages were headed toward them. He squeaked, and Tsukishima's fingers tightened around his.

"This way," the light mage said, tugging on his familair's hand and drawing him down the street, then into a shadowed alley, where they ducked into the shadows, pressed against the wall of a building, and waited. Several sentinels passed their hiding spot, and Yamaguchi's breath caught in his throat. Tsukishima's thumb brushed over the back of his hand, soothing him. After several moments, with no sentinels in sight, the light mage led his familiar down the alley, to where a low wall separated the city from the forest beyond. Tsukishima was tall enough to grab the top of the wall and pull himself over, and Yamaguchi had the leg strength of a deer, so he leaped high enough to get over. Once they were on the other side, they made their way into the forest. They walked for several minutes before Yamaguchi finally took Tsukishima's hand and pulled him to a stop. "We have to keep moving," the mage said grimly.

"Okay, Tsukki, but talk to me, okay? What's going on?" Yamaguchi asked. The mage sighed, eyes closing behind his glasses for a moment. When he opened his eyes, he fixed them on the ground.

"The Guildmaster has an alliance with the Windswept Mage Guild," Tsukishima said finally. "I overheard him talking to some of the senior mages. Apparently, he's decided he wants to exterminate the Aoba Josei Guild once and for all." Yamaguchi's eyes widened.

"But Aoba Josei's Guildmaster has a war god for a familiar! There's no way Moonlit Shadows has the strength to take them on," he protested.

"Which would explain why we - they - have an alliance with Windswept," Tsukishima pointed out. "What I don't know is why Windswept would agree to help Moonlit Shadows." They were quiet for a moment. Then Yamaguchi bit his lip, a realization washing over him.

"Karasuno," the familiar whispered. "Windswept would look really bad if they attacked a Guild founded by one of their former mages, right?"

"Yeah. Even though they parted on bad terms, if a Guild attacked a mage for leaving, there would be outrage from all of the independent mages, and several of the other Guilds as well." Tsukishima grimaced. "But if Moonlit Shadows were to attack and get rid of Karasuno, Windswept wouldn't have to get their hands dirty."

"But why are we running?" Yamaguchi asked hesitantly. Tsukishima sighed.

"You know those illusions the Guildmaster has been trying to get me to make?"

"Yeah, but isn't that just to help you improve your skill?" the familiar questioned.

"The Guildmaster was telling the senior mages that he wants all the light mages to be capable with illusions in time for the battle, whenever that will be. He wants to use the illusions to torment Aoba Josei, to confuse their war god, make him break," Tsukishima explained. "They were discussing what kind of illusions would be best when they noticed me. I ran." Yamaguchi stepped forward, reaching up to gently tilt the mage's head so he met his familiar's eyes.

"You don't want to use your magic for this." It wasn't a question, but Tsukishima nodded confirmation anyway.

"The whole rivalry with Aoba Josei is stupid," the light mage grumbled, eyes shifting so he wasn't looking into his familiar's freckled face. "And...it's lame to use trickery to try to break someone down just because you want to attack their Guild for no reason." Yamaguchi smiled and linked his arm with the mage's, setting off deeper into the forest. Tsukishima let himself be drawn along.

"You know what I think, Tsukki?" Yamaguchi hummed lightly. "I think you don't want to be used, and you don't want to hurt someone just because the Guildmaster said so." Tsukishima gave a soft snort, but Yamaguchi wasn't put off by it. "Let me guess. Did they want to use illusions of the Aoba Josei Guildmaster to manipulate his familiar? Maybe the Guildmaster being hurt? Or killed?" Tsukishima didn't reply, so Yamaguchi took that as confirmation. "You're a good person, Tsukki."

"I just think a war between Guilds is a waste of time," the light mage replied, frowning. Yamaguchi smiled.

"Right. Whatever you say," he agreed cheerfully.

"Shut up, Yamaguchi," the mage growled.

"Sorry, Tsukki," the familiar replied calmly. They walked in silence for a bit, but then Yamaguchi paused, dark gaze darting around.

"Yamaguchi? What-" A bolt of magic - fire or lightning, maybe - hit the ground in front of them. Tsukishima whirled toward the source of the magic, placing himself between his familiar and any potential danger, spheres of light appearing in his palms. Yamaguchi shifted to his stag form, ready to charge anyone who tried to get behind the mage.

"You didn't really think you could get away from us, did you?" The question came from the direction of the magic. A sentinel stepped into the clearing, then another and another, from different directions. They were surrounded. "Come back quietly and do your part when we attack Aoba Josei, and all will be forgiven. But if you resist..."

The sentinel closest to Yamaguchi lashed out, shadows wrapping around the stag's hooves before he could dodge. Tsukishima glanced over his shoulder, scowling, and tossed one of his light spheres, hoping his magic would cancel out the sentinel's. When his attention was on that, several wickedly sharp icicles flew through the air and plunged into Yamaguchi's flank. The familiar screamed and went down. Tsukishima roared and lashed out, not that his light spheres would do much damage to the more battle-ready sentinels. He tensed, waiting to see which sentinel would attack next. Before any of them could do so, however, sparks fell between Tsukishima and the sentinels, shielding the light mage and his familiar from the others. 

"Hey, hey, hey, what's all this about?" The sentinels fell back as a pair of men, one shorter with black hair and one taller with streaked, spiked hair, approached. "You shouldn't hurt a familiar to get at his master."

"Who are you?" one of the sentinels snapped. The man with the streaked hair grinned.

"I'm Bokuto Koutarou. And I have backup!" There was a sinister rustling sound, and suddenly the nearby trees were filled with angry-looking crows.


	2. Flight in Numbers

The sentinels didn't seem to know how to react to the presence of the fire mage and his accompanying flock of potential familiars. Tsukishima took advantage of the distraction and knelt beside Yamaguchi, who was still in stag form and bleeding from three icicle-induced wounds on his flank.

"Change back to human form," Tsukishima ordered softly. The magic of the transformation would help kick start Yamaguchi's natural healing ability, and if the familiar was in human form, it would be easier for Tsukishima to carry him if he needed to. The familiar obeyed, and Tsukishima carefully lifted his familiar's shirt, examining the wounds.

"I'll be fine in a day or two, Tsukki," Yamaguchi murmured. Tsukishima knew he was right, but it didn't make him any less angry at himself for letting his familiar get hurt in the first place.

"This way," an unfamiliar voice urged. Tsukishima tensed and looked up. One of the men that had arrived with the crows - the shorter, dark-haired one - had apparently made his way through the protective flames that were still keeping the sentinels from attacking Tsukishima and Yamaguchi further. Tsukishima hesitated, debating whether or not to trust the stranger. "I'm Akaashi, Bokuto's familiar. Let's get yours to a safe place. Then you can decide if you want to trust us or not." Tsukishima glanced at Yamaguchi, who was staring up at him with dark, trusting eyes. Yamaguchi would go along with whatever Tsukishima decided.

"All right. What do we need to do?" Tsukishima asked.

"If your familiar can't walk, you'll have to carry him. If I'm with you, we can just walk through the fire. The crows will cover us, and if they get past the crows, I'll just let one of them almost hit me, and then Bokuto will incinerate them." There was a faint smirk on the man's face as he said that, and Tsukishima noticed there was a healing scratch on his cheek. The light mage wondered who had scratched him, and what Bokuto had done to them. Then he shook his head and focused on Yamaguchi.

"I can walk," Yamaguchi said before the mage asked. Tsukishima made a short, irritated noise, then slid his arms underneath his familiar and gently lifted him. Yamaguchi laughed quietly. "Or not."

"Lead the way," Tsukishima told Akaashi, who nodded and led them toward Bokuto. When they reached the protective ring of fire, the flames parted as Akaashi stepped through them, and Tsukishima followed quickly. The sentinels, who had apparently been having a silent standoff with the crows, noticed Tsukishima's reappearance and tensed.

"Don't even think about it," Bokuto warned, sparks shooting from his fingertips. The sentinel who seemed to be in charge signaled the others not to attack as Tsukishima carried Yamaguchi toward Bokuto. One of the younger sentinels lashed out anyway, shooting a fireball at them. Akaashi darted forward, placing himself between the light mage and the fireball. For an instant, Tsukishima thought the familiar was going to get burned.

Bokuto wasn't about to allow that, however. The ring of fire that fad protected them before surged, tongues of flame lashing out at the sentinels, one stretching to intercept the fireball before it reached Akaashi. There was a harsh, crackling roar, and the sentinels fell back, terrified, as the flames expanded further, then separated into spheres of molten fury and pursued them into the trees.

"You didn't really need us after all," commented one of the crows, leaving its branch and landing a near Bokuto, transforming into a large blond man at the same time.

"They wouldn't have run so quickly if you hadn't been here," Bokuto replied absently, his attention on Akaashi. The fire mage's gaze raked over his familiar, searching for any injuries. Once he was assured himself that he had indeed protected him from any harm, he turned to Tsukishima. "They mentioned attacking Aoba Josei," he said warily, his golden eyes narrowing as he eyed the light mage. "Is Moonlit Shadows up to their old tricks again?"

"I thought they gave up after Oikawa got that war god of his," the blond man who had been a crow moments ago replied, frowning. Tsukishima shrugged.

"Not my problem," the light mage said. "Thanks for the help, but I need to get my familiar somewhere safe so he can heal."

"I know a place," the blond said. "There's a Guild that's developing a habit of taking in mages and familiars who are running away from their own Guilds." Tsukishima scowled.

"We don't need any more help," he insisted. "I'm done with Guilds, for a while at least." There was a moment of silence. Then Bokuto spoke.

"You're turning down help when your familiar is hurt? What kind of mage are you? If Akaashi got hurt, I'd-"

"Yamaguchi will be fine in a day or so. Thanks for the offer, but no thanks," Tsukishima replied. His familiar shifted in his arms, and the light mage glanced down. Yamaguchi's expression clearly said that he had something to say about the situation. "What is it, Yamaguchi?"

"I'm fine with whatever you want, Tsukki, but we should tell them about the Guildmaster's plan before we leave," the familiar replied gently. Tsukishima clicked his tongue as though in irritation, then glanced up.

"Moonlit Shadows has some kind of alliance with Windswept. Moonlit Shadows takes out Karasuno, and Windswept helps them take out Aoba Josei," Tsukishima told them curtly. "There, Yamaguchi. I told them. Can we go now?" The familiar smiled and laid his head on the mage's shoulder.

"If that's what you want, Tsukki," he answered calmly. Tsukishima nodded to the mage and his entourage, then turned so he was headed away from Moonlit Shadows' Guild Hall, but toward the next town over. He knew there was a Guild there, but it wasn't Windswept, Karasuno, or Aoba Josei, so he figured he'd be able to get some distance from this whole war-on-the-horizon situation. After all, the Guild in that town was known for being clever and subtle, but not for waging war. He'd never heard of Nekoma Mage Guild engaging in a Guild war before, anyway.

Bokuto, Akaashi, and the crows watched the light mage and his familiar leave. Once they were out of sight, Akaashi turned to the blond man.

"We have to warn Karasuno and Aoba Josei. Ukai, can one of your crows...?"

"Yeah. I'll send Shimada and Takinoue to Aoba Josei if you two head for Karasuno. I'll keep my crows on alert, make sure no one starts any battles in the forest. Maybe we'll be able to convince a few other groups to help out, too," the blond replied.

"We were planning to visit Nekoma," Akaashi replied, glancing at Bokuto.

"We can't just leave now that we're involved!" Bokuto exclaimed. "Besides, that guy with the glasses will end up telling Nekoma what's going on." Akaashi nodded.

"Whether he wants to or not," the familiar agreed. Ukai studied them for a moment, then shrugged.

"All right. Keep in touch," he said.

"We will," Akaashi assured him, transforming into his sooty owl form and perching on Bokuto's shoulder, an anklet of obsidian stones glinting just above his talons. Bokuto grinned and stroked his familiar's wing lightly, then turned and headed for the village where Karasuno's Guild Hall was. A moment later, two crows rose above the treeline, circled, then flew off in the direction of Aoba Josei's village and Guild Hall.


End file.
